Passive stiffness of the ankle and plantar flexor muscle performance after Achilles tendon repair: a cross-sectional study.
Pollyana R T Borges, Thiago R T Santos, Paula R S Procópio and 3 others
PMID 28442075WHAT IT FOUND
Overall ankle stiffness and calf torque and work did not differ between groups, but at least 12 months after Achilles repair the operated side had lower passive stiffness and greater side-to-side stiffness and calf work asymmetry.
Key findings
01Overall passive ankle stiffness did not differ between groups, but the surgical limb had lower stiffness than the non-surgical limb and than the paired non-dominant control limb.
02The repaired group had greater absolute ankle stiffness asymmetry than controls (5.6 ± 3.6° vs 2.9 ± 2.4°).
03Overall plantar flexor torque and work did not differ between groups, but the repaired group had greater asymmetry of concentric work (17.3 ± 11.8 vs 9.0 ± 8.0) and eccentric work (15.9 ± 9.1 vs 9.0 ± 7.0).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Convenience sample, so participants may not represent all people after Achilles repair. The study did not match the groups, although mean age, body mass and height were similar. It did not report details of the rehabilitation program or the participants' functional status. It was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that repair caused the stiffness or asymmetry differences. It did not assess muscle cross-sectional area, so the proposed reason for lower stiffness remains speculative.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Achilles repair causes ankle instability or weakness. The study measured stiffness and muscle work, not function or injury risk, and the groups did not differ overall in peak torque or work; only side-to-side asymmetries were higher.